Petals
by Strawberry-Apple-Pomegranate B
Summary: Absentmindedly, her fingers toyed with the end of one healthy petal. 'He loves me not.'
1. Hello!

**S-A-P B: **Kagome pretty much replaces Chelsea in this, sorry to say, even if I love Chelsea as a character. Reverse harem! Yay~

_Inuyasha_ belongs to its owner  
_Harvest Moon: Island of Happiness_ to its owner as well

Song(s) of Inspiration: _Bad Apple!_, _Smooth Criminal_, _Enbizaka no Shitateya_

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**Hello!**

_Sitting on the small boulder, waiting for Inuyasha, she had her chin settled in her hands as her elbows rested on her on her knees. Her blue eyes glazed over in thought as she sat there, however tilting her head, she noticed an innocent flower had grown not too far from her perch, the dark magenta center just staring at her as the lighter-colored petals made a few of her fingers twitch. Reaching down, she plucked the flower._

Kagome stepped onto the beach; sandals taking in some sand to her irritation, but it was quickly forgotten about as she gazed at what would most likely be her new home away from everything that she went through. She smiled as she adjusted her trusty weathered and well-used yellow backpack's straps. The shrine maiden ran a hand through her short hair; she just couldn't handle the heat well anymore.

Following the dock, she pulled down her baggy shirt, checking her bound chest that – in all honesty – didn't look that flat, but the bagginess of the shirt did its job in helping the bounds. The khaki shorts she wore were baggy as well; reaching a bit passed her knees. Blue eyes looked herself up and down mentally, she hated her appearance – however, lessons in the Feudal Era taught her that woman weren't viewed upon highly unless they were miko, meant to take care of the children and household—it seemed so stereotypical of men to think that…

Looking at the path once she fully crossed the beach, Kagome recited the directions to where she wanted to go – or who to ask. _'Go straight to where there is a cross in the path, then it is the house in the top right… corner-thing. Ask for a… Taro? Is that his name?'_

The black-haired cross dresser stopped in the middle of the path to tilt her head to the side, while simultaneously looking up, wrinkling her nose as she furrowed her eyebrows. Taking a step, she moved her head to stare at the path, purposely taking her time in walking to the crossroad in the path, the long sleeves of her shirt reaching passed her fingertips and flapping as she swung her arms back and forth.

A brown curly-haired male exited the shop to Kagome's left, stopping to stare at the island's newcomer in curiosity and worry – the face he was making made him seem irritated. Was that his default face? Denny frowned, he at least hoped that it wasn't, he hoped that if it wasn't, that the two of them could be friends.

"Are you new here?"

Kagome paused mid-step, foot slightly raised and in the air, as she looked over to the source of the noise, face blank and eyes curious as she looked at the brown-haired male. Unfortunately her attention was drawn to the black bird on his head, making her blink and redirect her path to the male who had asked her the question. Once she reached him, however, Kagome could tell that there was some sort of height difference like there was between her and the majority of the male population, "I am… who are you? Do you know a… Taro?"

The fisherman blinked down at the shorter male, shocked at the change in demeanor and at the height difference, "I'm Denny… and yes, I know Taro, he lives right over there."

The black-haired female followed where he was pointing, "Oh…" She felt slightly stupid, but she rationalized with herself on the part that she was new to this island. Kagome turned back to Denny, smiling, "Thank you!"

Denny brought his hand back to help hold the fishing equipment that he bought, "Your welcome, but who are you?"

The cross dressing shrine maiden mentally berated herself on the lack of common courtesy and manners, "I'm…" Internally she panicked; she couldn't give her first name, it was too feminine; she needed a name that she liked… "Higurashi, Jun. I also go by Kazuo as well, a nickname my friends gave me."

The tan-skinned fisherman cocked his head to the side at the name; the name reminded him of Chen's ethnicity a bit, "All right, I have to get back to my shack, but it was great meeting you, Kazuo!"

Kagome sweat dropped as the man named Denny walked away from her smiling, she had a feeling that he'd be waving to her if his hands weren't full of recently bought items. Either way, she found herself waving to him as he left, it was the least she could do after not telling him her 'name' out of common courtesy.

Putting her hand back at her side once the curly-haired man was out of her sight, Kagome turned back the way she was originally heading, looking at the house that Denny had pointed out to her as Taro's house – though it looked a bit run-down to be called a house…

Running a hand through her black locks, she sighed at the fact that she had to get herself used to being called Jun or Kazuo by the people here, should she be given a place to live here, that is. _'Great Kagome, just great! You had to choose a name that is unisex and could very well blow your disguise as a male!'_

Slumping her shoulders, she took her dear sweet time walking up to the door of what was Taro's house, to which she lifted her head and brought her shoulders back up – blue eyes stared at the door for a few minutes, she looked around her to determine where the sun was before raising her hand to knock on the wood. The house was silent after she knocked; however, Kagome listened hard enough to hear some faint shuffling approaching the door a few minutes later.

Stepping back a pace or two, she watched as the door opened and a pink-haired male looked at her curiously, hand adjusting his glasses as his brown eyes looked her over. The black-haired priestess blinked and the unknown male blinked as well. The awkward silence between them grew even more awkward as Kagome lightly kicked her foot back and forth.

"Whose at the door?"

The pink-haired male flinched as another pink-haired person – a girl this time – appeared next to him, furrowing her brow as her brown eyes spotted Kagome. In return, Kagome was looking over their attires, blinking as she wondered at the fashion sense – though she couldn't really complain, she just threw on what was comfortable nowadays since her adventure back and forth through time had ended a few months ago, not long after she turned eighteen.

Kagome raised her hand in greeting, "Hi."

The boy blinked and greeted her back; the girl on the other hand was more reluctant to do so, "What do you want here?"

The black-haired cross dresser wonder if her eye twitched like she felt it do, "I'm here to see Taro."

The two looked at her, one more skeptically than the other, before the female pushed the male back inside to get their grandfather. Kagome rubbed the back of her head at that, who was there grandfather and did he know Taro? The two females had a staring contest in the span of time it took for the pink-haired boy to return to the open door, "Grandfather says to let him in, Natalie."

The girl made a slight sound, but moved aside and moved back inside the house to which the male made a motion for her to follow him inside. Walking inside, Kagome closed the door behind herself and took off her sandals out of habit and custom back where she was from. She didn't care, but she could feel the pink-haired female staring at her as she did so, looking away once Kagome had righted herself and walked over to where the pink-haired male sat with an older looking pink-haired woman and a bald old man.

'_That must be their grandfather. And why are there so many people with pink-hued hair? I understand that it is inherited, but this is a bit much!'_

The old man had a cane and was sharply observing her as she came closer, "So you are the one who inquired about living here on Sunny Island… tell me boy, what's your name?"

Kagome blinked when the old man called her 'boy,' she didn't believe that she looked that much like a male, but answered him nonetheless and didn't correct him for obvious reasons; she bowed as she introduced herself to the family by the looks of it, "Higurashi, Jun, though my friends call me Kazuo."

The old man stroked his mustache, "Hm… Higurashi is your surname, yes? Well, Jun, what experience do you have farming and raising livestock?"

'_Farming and livestock?'_ Kagome looked the old man, presumably Taro, in the eye, "I've helped a woman I considered my grandmother many times in the field and I am willing to learn more. As for livestock, I do not have much experience."

Despite the fact she didn't have much experience, Taro smiled at her, hitting his cane against the floor a couple of times, "I am a farming veteran and am willing to teach you for as long as you are willing to live here, Jun. Why don't you join us for breakfast before I show you the house you are going to be living in on this island?"

Kagome blanched, waving her hands, "I can't – I don't want to intrude anymore than I already have!"

The older woman smiled at Kagome, her eyes were closed Kagome noted, "Nonsense, Jun. You are more than welcome here since you are going to be living on the island with us. Why don't you set your bag down and take a seat? It'll be a great way of getting to know you better."

Slightly blushing, she set her well-worn yellow bag down by the wall before walking back over the table that was set with dishes and food, an extra set of dishes and seat being set up for her to join their breakfast – that she didn't want to intrude on.

Sitting at the table with the family, she was placed next to Taro and his granddaughter – who was Natalie through observation – Elliot on Natalie's other side and their smiling mother sitting in between Taro and her son. Kagome looked at the family as discretely as she could, feeling as if the set-up in their seating was somewhat intentional – to which Kagome hoped was not the case…

'_I barely know this family! Not to mention that I'm actually a woman, however, if it is to get a place to live here, I will stay dressing as a male.'_ The black-haired female took a bit of the food set in front of her politely when everyone else began eating, taking pleasure in the fact that food was well prepared and, in fact, delicious despite its simplicity.

Closing her eyes in bliss, Kagome smiled large, swallowing the food in her mouth, "This is delicious!"

Taro smiled from his seat beside her and Felicia let her ever present to grow a bit from the compliment, "I'm glad that you like it, Jun."

Taking another bite of her meal, Taro looked over at the cross dressing female, "Tell us about your family, why don't you?"

Swallowing, she looked over at the old man next to her, "My family? Hm. I have a younger brother, Souta, my mother and grandfather – all of which live back on a shrine. I never really knew my father that well, unfortunately."

"Such a shame about your father, Jun." Felicia commented to the black-haired priestess.

Kagome shrugged, "It's all right, I never really knew him and I learned a lot from my mother and grandfather in his place."

"Oh, that's good, dear."

The black-haired female internally twitched at the affectionate term, it reminded her so much of her mother back home, back on the shrine and relived that she's no longer fighting demons in the past, but worried at the same time for her choice to live by herself on an island – though it was alleviated a bit by the fact that she could contact her if need be.

Kagome made a sound of agreement with the mother that could very well be a substitute mother on the island for her, while her mother was back on the shrine. She wondered if she'd be able to eventually tell her the fact that she was actually a female instead of a male and that her name was actually Kagome instead of Jun or Kazuo…

Breakfast was over all too soon to Kagome, who cleaned her plate of her food, pleasing Natalie and Elliot's mother and grandfather. She was adamant to help clean up the dishes, but was denied by Taro and Felicia and she was stuck standing off to the side by her yellow backpack, even Elliot and Natalie were doing their own things – getting ready for the day ahead of them.

'_Man, I feel useless just standing here.'_

Upon the completion of the dishes, Taro came up to her and motioned for her to follow him to see where it was that she was going to be living on the island. Elliot stayed behind with Natalie and their mother to help sort any shipment that came to the island. There were a few more people outside now that the time had progressed since she first arrived. Walking with Taro, they passed a silver-haired man with cowboy attire.

Kagome looked over her shoulder at the male, _'What the hell? What is with the fashion nowadays here on the island? No offense, since I can't really complain, but… damn.'_

Her attention was drawn to the bald elder as they walked up a bit of a hill almost to a somewhat secluded farm, the field looked like it needed to weeded and cleared of any rocks and sticks before it could be used for growing any crops. The house was a bit small, but she'd make something of it, Kagome wouldn't let the opportunity to live by herself pass up and go back to life in the claustrophobic city back on the main land.

By the tree line there looked to be a space for what might be a barn or chicken coop should she be able to get enough money to build one or the other – maybe both. Scanning the ground near her, she spotted a barn-like house, wondering what it was used for. She'd have to explore the premise if she didn't get a tour of it first by the elderly man.

Following him up the path to the house, Kagome looked at the house more; it was decent – just on the small side as she observed when they first came upon the property. Opening the door, there was new furniture in it – to which she walked over to the bed to set down her yellow backpack on. Taro had followed her inside, "Gannon fixed this up when I told him that a new person was to be moving onto the island and live in this house. And new furniture was added as you can see."

"Eh?" Kagome looked over her shoulder at the white-mustached man, "You didn't need to add the furniture! My mother would have sent the most over and I could've just went back to get anything else. Maybe…" She added the last bit under her breath to herself.

"Come along, I have more to show you on the farm."

Blue eyes watched as Taro left and she didn't have a choice but to follow after the cane-wielding elder. She followed him to the edge of the field to which he gave her farm tools – asking her what she wanted to name her ranch—to which she decided on a name she's most likely going to regret, explaining them to her and the basics of farming, promising to come back the next day to teach her more – not before giving her a couple bags of turnip seeds. Before he left, he signaled her to come over a box or bin near the path that led onto the property, closest to the town, "This is the shipping bin. Every day at five post meridian, either Elliot and or myself will come by to pick up anything that you put into this to be sold to the mainland for gold – that will be given to yourself or left where you can get it."

Kagome nodded at this, standing there as the old man gave her a farewell and watched him leave before turning to explore her new home, first heading to what looked like a barn, but she wasn't sure of. Pushing open the swinging doors, she saw a feeder and two feeding plots, _'It looks like a barn, but is a bit taller… a stable, maybe?'_

Feeling her curiosity being sated, she exited what she was going to call the stable, easily startling when a small person appearing before her out of thin air.

"Hello there, I'm Noe, a Harvest Sprite." The small person introduced themselves as.

'_A Harvest Sprite..?'_ Kagome blinked, surprised at meeting a sprite, but not feeling frightened from her trips to the past.

Sitting down on her knees, Kagome listened to what the Harvest Sprite had to say to her about the whole overview of the magical aspects to Sunny Island – even telling her that he'd inform her of the island's progress over the span of her living here. When Noe finally disappeared, Kagome stood on slightly shaky feet, mind whirling from taking in so much information – it was obvious that Taro didn't know of the Harvest Sprites since he didn't mention them to her.

Yawning, she looked over to the field meant to grow crops in – that still needed to have the stones and sticks removed, let's not forget about being weeded. Walking to the side of her house, Kagome rested her tools there, resolving to start with the weeding first, and work with what was hardest last – although, she probably should have worked backwards if she wanted to make it easier on herself later on.

_The petals were smooth to the touch, almost waxy, but with a mix of butter soft leather – the flower she was holding was truly a weird flower. She had sniffed it not long after picking it up, but it didn't really have much of a scent, just some generic smell that she associated with the majority of flowers. Absentmindedly, her fingers toyed with the end of one healthy petal._

On her hands and knees, Kagome set to work on pulling up the weeds, setting them on the edge of the pre-plowed field. In the corner that she was working in, she was making fast progress; she might even have the field fully weeded before long! Maybe she could start on smashing the stones with the hammer ahead of time… Kagome smiled to herself, knowing that she was letting her mind get ahead of her body – the unexpected usually happened and she could never be too sure of what might happen next.

Pulling a weed and throwing it onto the growing pile, the black-haired female sat back on her heels – blue eyes looked up to the equally blue sky, not a cloud in sight. Sighing and standing on tiring feet, she grabbed the weeds, looking to the shipping bin, wondering if it was all right for her to put weeds in there or not. Deciding that since she was new, that she might be able to get away with it, but she stopped half way there – deciding against it and to just throw the weeds away.

Entering her small house, she made her way to the trash near the phone. Kagome paused; there was a phone, which meant that there might be electricity for her to call her family to tell them that she made it to the island all right and that she was now going to be living there so long as she farmed and took care of livestock… Kagome dusted her hands off and reached for the phone, shouldering the phone as she worked putting her home's number in.

It rung in her ear a few times, she knew no one at the shrine would recognize the number, so she said that she's leave a message for them to listen to if it was her calling and that the number was hers for as long as she lived there, until she moved or anything. The telltale signs of the answering machine spoke into her ear not even a minute later, to which Kagome waited for it to signal for her to speak.

Denny stood in the open door way of Kagome's house, the person in question on the phone, looking at Kuu when he made a slight noise; he gently shushed him in favor of waiting for Kazuo to finish on the phone. He distracted himself as the black-haired boy spoke in soft tones into the receiver, to which, when the receiver was set down with a soft click, the fisherman rapped a knuckle on the open door – startling the poor black-haired priestess. He raised his hands in an apologetic display, "Sorry about that, I just wanted to know if you wanted to go fishing, Kazuo."

"Huh? Oh…" _'Weeding could wait a little bit… there's just one thing.'_ "I don't have a fishing rod." Kagome finished lamely.

Denny smiled and gave a small laugh, "That won't be a problem, Kazuo! I have a spare that you can use!"

"You sure?"

The purple bandana-wearing fisherman waves his hand dismissively, "Positive!" He walked into the house to grab Kazuo's closest wrist, leading him out of his house – and closing the door that he forgot to close earlier, "You do know how to fish right?"

Kazuo pouted at the question, "Of course I do!" _'The way where one stands in the river and attempts to catch the fish with their bare hands…'_

Looking back at the pre-plowed field littered with weeds, stones and sticks, Kagome can't help but wonder if her procrastination will take hold of her on this little island and she'll be kicked off. Looking forward again, her blue eyes found it fascinating as the tanned fisherman's brown curly hair bounced as he took his steps – she couldn't help but think back to her now short hair, curious if hers did the exactly same thing as his—bouncing. Her free hand went back to feeling the back of her head; did she have any curly locks of hair on her head at all?

_The tips of her fingers tightened on that one petal, as she continued to stare forward from where she sat on the boulder. Pulling her hand back as she was doing before, her fingers kept their hold before there was slack and her hand jerked back about an inch or two. Looking down, Kagome eyed the light-colored flower with the magenta center, eyes going to where it was no missing one of its petals. Staring at it for about a minute, she made a resolution._

_The priestess started to pluck the petals off one by one._

_On the ground by her feet, the petals rested among the blades of grass – standing out with their light magenta color._

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**S-A-P B:** I'll update _Ask Ivan's Sisters_ tomorrow after graduation rehearsal number three for my class. I have all the questions put into the word document; I just need to get the answers and story-like bit in between each question and answer. Originally, I was going to go for ten thousand words on this beginning chapter, but… that's not going to happen. I'll be needing feedback on this fanfiction, by the way, so if you do read it, please review.


	2. Redundancy

_Inuyasha_ and _Harvest Moon: Island of Happiness_ belong to their rightful owners.

Inspiring Song(s): _Ievan Polkka_ (Kagamine Rin ver.), _Ordinary_, _Take Me Away_

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**Redundancy**

'_At least Denny was nice enough to let me borrow a bucket to carry the fish that I caught, although…' _Kagome flushed at the receding memory – feeling like she should kick herself. While the brown-haired fisherman was retrieving his and a spare fishing rod, she had just taken off her sandals and stepped into the ocean, not going too far out to get her upper shorts wet or her shirt, but enough that fish would be around her somewhat within reach.

A small pain started to form and pester the shrine maiden in the middle of her back – the pain was nothing compared to what she had to deal with while in the Feudal Era, however, and Kagome was able to easily ignore the forming ache. The sun was almost starting to set, probably about an hour or so left before dusk – the black-haired female mentally sighed, she still needed to weed the plot of land that she was going to farm on and get rid of the excess sticks and stones.

"_What are you doing, Kazuo?" Kagome looked over at the purple bandana-wearing fisherman, a medium-sized fish in her hands, before blinking and answering, "Fishing."_

_Denny scratched the back of his head in skepticism, Kuu rested on his non-moving shoulder and stared at the cross dresser – Kagome would later swear that the little black bird knew that she wasn't a 'he' like everyone is believing – "Whatever you say, whatever you say… why don't you try an actual fishing rod this time, though? I will admit that that is a pretty good fish~"_

_Kagome sighed and wadded back to shore, the fish still struggling in her hands – her shorts up to mid thigh were thoroughly soaked with the ocean's salt water, "And where do I put this fellow?" _

_Giving a small laugh, Denny approached near the shore line, setting the two rods down and went back to his shack to retrieve a bucket that Kazuo could store any more fish that he caught in. Coming back, he filled it and turned to the black-haired male, "Here."_

_Plopping the fish into the bucket, the cross dressing priestess looked to the taller person, "You could've said for me to put the fish back and use a fishing rod instead…"_

_The curly-haired fisherman gave a large grin and shook his head, picking up the rods and beckoning for the smaller male to follow him out onto the dock with the bucket, their footfalls causing the boards to faintly creak, "For not using a fishing rod, it's a good catch, Kazuo! Besides, I would've let you borrow a bucket anyway for any fish that you would catch anyhow."_

The priestess huffed, setting the loaned bucket down momentarily to rest her hands on her lower back – attempting and unable to crack her back, giving a yawn which one of her hands went up to cover her mouth. She really needed to weed the whole plot of land on the farm that she now lived on. Kagome was grateful for gaining a friend so fast on the island; despite the time that she was there was so short.

The blue-black-haired priestess made her way to her ranch as quietly as she could without gaining any unwanted attention from the other inhabitants of the island, happy for all her time in the Feudal Era where she had to deal with inhuman entities with supernatural senses and abilities. Relief flooded her body and soul – _complete_ mind you – as she saw her slightly small house come into view over the hill; the water in the bucket sloshing against the sides as her stride quickened a bit.

Cresting the hill, the cross dressing female froze as her blue eyes took in the figure leaning against the wall of the outside of her new house by the reddish door, black hat pulled low over their face. Kagome tilted her head this way and that as she examined the lone figure on her property, he – she was assuming, safely, hopefully – looked familiar to her… the priestess's eyes widened as a look of realization—that was the cowboy she passed on her way to her see what was to be her ranch for the first time when Taro lead her to it!

Kagome's steps resumed towards her house, taking her dear sweet time doing so and curious as to just how long the person was waiting for her to get back to her home. The various size fish that she caught moved as much as they were able to in their limited spaced container, the salt water making a soft noise that soon silenced itself as the carrier stopped five feet from the hat-wearing figure.

"Hello?" The priestess hunched her shoulders a bit, attempting to look up under the black western hat with the tan strip – curious as to what the man's face looked like.

She could swear she could hear a faint grunt from the solitary figure, one of his hands left their position of being crossed over his chest to lift the brim of his hat – the glove was interesting, the thumb and forefinger were the only two fingers to not be covered at all – a white bandana tied around his neck was exposed first, and then his face starting from his chin before going upwards. The western-looking male was attractive, Kagome would give him that, surprised that she's see a normal human with purple eyes and silver hair.

'_Is he half albino by any chance? Or have any youkai lineage somewhere in his family?'_ The cross dresser felt a slight blush dust her upper cheeks at the man's offstandish personality – it reminded her so much of Sesshoumaru and the higher class demons in the past that didn't concern themselves with the fragments of the Shikon no Tama.

The silence between them stretched on, weighing on Kagome the most noticeably while the silver-haired male seemed completely unaffected by it – the priestess shifted from foot to foot as she tried to come up with something to say that didn't sound completely awkward to break the silence. One thing she didn't fail to notice was the fact that, like with Denny and even at five feet away, she was at least a head shorter than the western-looking male leaning against the side of her house; he may even be a bit taller than just a head taller!

"I feel so short…" She glared off to the side at nothing, having unconsciously announced that thought aloud, the faint blush only a bit darker – missing the quirk of one of the corners of the silver-haired man's lips at her statement. Huffing, and puffing her cheeks out a little, Kagome set down the bucket in front of her feet and stretched a hand out towards the other person, "I'm Higurashi, Jun, though my close friends call me Kazuo."

The light-haired male ignored her outstretched hand – eerily reminding her a bit of Sesshoumaru's personality more and more – looking at her directly and hands shoved into his pockets, "Vaughn, I'm the animal dealer for the island." One side of Kagome's mouth tipped downwards and her hand lowered itself back to her side like her other hand, "I see… well, it's a pleasure to meet you, _Vaults_."

The cross dresser ignored the sour look she received from the cowboy animal dealer and the way that he repeated his name to correct her – _"It's _Vaughn_."_ – shuffling passed her irate stature, and reminding her just how much of a height difference there was between the two of them.

Kagome huffed and childishly stomped her foot when she deemed the other person far away enough from herself, resisting the urge to tug and pull at her short raven locks—giving a withering glare to the pile of pulled weeds by the edge of tilled plot of land, creating a reminder of her duty as a farmer now. Exhaling noisily, she blew the air upwards to her bangs, momentarily moving them out of her eyes – clearing her vision of her hair. Her entire being slumped tiredly as she yawned loudly, not bothering to cover her mouth this time.

Picking the bucket back up, she shuffled over to the door, easing it open and flicked the light on, looking around the room exhaustedly – putting the bucket down by the edge of her bed, her stomach rumbled hungrily at her – moving to get ready for bed, not surprised that she's have to wake up early. Groaning, Kagome undid the binds on her chest, alleviating the pressure on her lungs and allowing her to breathe deeply. Climbing into the single bed, the priestess threw a sandal at the light switch, hitting it dead-on and abruptly shutting the lights off – flopping back onto the bed, asleep by the time that her head rested peacefully on the pillow.

**-0-**

_The shed feathers on the ground under her body cushioned parts of it, vigilant flowers remained standing despite the faux covering. The long-haired sixteen-year-old closed her eyes in content as she let her mind wander, planning to nap and rid her body of any unwanted stress that was plaguing her body – muscles gradually relaxing under the promise of sleep. The passing wind ruffled and shifted the feathers on the ground, flowers bobbing up and down and strands of her raven locks moving with the wind winding through the grass._

_The lone figure sighed, silently groaning as she sat up from her previous position. Kagome looked around the empty meadow, white flowers dotting the landscape here and there – her fingers twitched as she plucked one close to her person. It was a pretty flower, she'd admit, and thankfully there were no bugs or anything like that residing on the flower. It was nothing more and nothing less, but a simple daisy._

_Her head tilted a bit to the side as she let the fingertips of her other hand trace the end of the white petals, the almost wax texture of the petal—Kagome didn't hesitate to pluck the first petal from the simple flower. She brought the petal to her face, turning it this way and that – examining it curiously out of boredom. A soft giggle left her mouth, 'It's almost like when kids would pluck the petals to determine if the person they had a crush on liked them back or not.'_

_The priestess didn't bother trying to count how many petals the flower had, plucking them one by one, the first one she took from the daisy was 'He loves me not'._

_Kagome pouted as she looked at the petals littering her green skirt that covered her lap, blue-gray eyes trailing the pathetic image the naked flower presented without what made it look beautiful. Huffing, she let the pout dissolve from her lips as she was determined to not let the result get the best of her; it was all in good fun after all – it wasn't meant to be serious or anything._

_The final petal was, 'He loves me not'._

**-0-**

Kagome turned onto her stomach in her bed, not needing to look around to know that the sun hadn't even risen over the horizon yet. Burying her face into the soft pillow, the cross dressing priestess let her body just lay limp – not yet ready to get up and face the new day – but when sleep alluded her and refused to allow her back into its arms, the short-haired girl made her way out of bed at a snail's pace. It irritated her that she would have to bathe in the stream on the far side of her property because her house didn't come with a bath or shower, though it did contain a toilet for her—_'That's nice of them, to put a bathroom in here, it'll especially help when that time of the month rolls around.'_

Gathering some clothes that she had within her worn yellow backpack, the blue-black-haired nineteen-year-old made sure that she had a towel with her as well as bandages to bind her chest and anything else that she may need for her cold stream bath. The thought gave her chills, imagining the water's temperature, but she could handle it – Kagome remembered all the times she bathed in a cold stream in the early morning or at night when their group was unable to locate any hot springs around.

There were still a few stars remaining in the sky – _what time was it?_ – as Kagome made her way over to the stream, she didn't really remember spotting it, but brushed it off as something that she registered subconsciously. She was glad for her eyes adjusting to the fading night as dawn was soon to be approaching—though she wasn't sure, it was better to be safe than sorry.

To her surprise – after pacing the pulled weeds and others that have yet to be – the water wasn't as cold as she first thought, but then again, it was just her foot in the water after she striped and set what she had with her near the edge, but not close enough to let them fall in and be swept away by the river's current. Breathing in and out, Kagome gathered her bearings and jumped close to the middle of the river, the air leaving her lungs as the temperature hit her naked body full force – bunches of air bubbles leaving to escape the water.

Kicking her legs, the tips of her toes brushed some smooth pebbles and rocks on the sandy bottom, Kagome broke the surface of the water, short black hair sticking to the back of her neck and various parts of her face – lips slightly purple from the temperature. Shivering as she could feel the each individuals water droplets run down her flesh exposed to the air, the farmer made her way to the riverbank, grabbing her two-in-one shampoo and conditioner, lathering it in her hair after putting a decent amount in one palm.

The white lather left her hair once she dunked her head and shoulders back under the water's surface, the river's current aiding her in rinsing her hair – the motion played and toyed with her suspended locks of blue-black hair, blue-gray eyes watching what strands she could see before quickly resurfacing. Her skin was a tad paler than before as she walked out of the river, not up to washing her body with her body wash – her hair was enough as is, and she wasn't sure how it was going to affect the fish in the waters.

The air was warm around her body as she toweled off her body and dried her hair, wishing that she had brought her sandals with her to prevent her feet from becoming dirty from walking in the grass back to her house. Sighing, the priestess bandaged her chest, trying to not make it too tight or constricting to the point where she could potentially pass out – throwing on the clothes she brought with her—which consisted of a dark shade of a grayish-lavender long-sleeved turtle neck and simple blue jeans that slightly flared at the bottom.

Kagome looked down at the bottoms of her pants, _'Hopefully, I don't look to feminine in these pants. I really don't want to go through questioning or anything like that if people think I swing the other way, since I'm supposed to be a male…'_ Shrugging, she looped a belt through the belt loops to hold up the jeans, letting her shirt rest at the top of her thighs, hopefully hiding her hips from anyone on the island, _'Why is it that the majority of the clothes that I brought with me are baggy?'_

Gathering her towel and other toiletries, the cross dresser walked back to her house, flicking on the light as she closed the door behind her – lamenting that her eyes stung a bit at the bright light – depositing her clothes on the end of her bed where she proceeded to fold them, hiding her undergarments should anyone barge into home. Kagome sighed as she looked at the small pile of cloth, _'I'm going to have to hand wash all my clothes aren't I?'_ The though put a frown on her lips, it was bad enough that she had to bathe in the river and risk affecting the fish!

Letting her shoulders slump, the priestess grabbed the necessary tools and made her way outside, throwing on simple brown boots on the way, as she made her way to the pulled weeds. Setting down the farming equipment, Kagome put her hands on her hips, wonder just what to do with the pulled weeds, but knew that she couldn't just leave them there or throw them somewhere in the woods – sighing, she gripped as many as she could and made her way over to the shipping bin, _'Never said I couldn't put weeds here, Taro.'_

The pile quickly diminished as she worked, the raven-haired nineteen-year-old moving on to the weeds within the tilled land, pulling them and putting them in a pile. The time passed quickly for her, and more weeds were taken from their rooted place – the blue-black-haired priestess was oblivious to the two guests that appeared at the edge of her property, what she did notice though was when one of the visitors came to the edge of the field, "My, you seem to be working hard."

Kagome froze and looked over to the two women, one was about her age and the other was an older plump woman with a smiling face. Sitting back on the balls of her feet; she didn't really want to have to change her pants due to dirty knees; her hands gripped the toes of her boots, shoulders hunched, as the girl her age faintly blushed, she herself was confused, "Um… not to be rude, but may I ask who you are?"

The plump woman spoke up, "You aren't being rude, dear. I'm Mirabelle and this is my daughter Julia."

The raven-haired teenager nodded her head at the introduction, "I'm Higurashi, Jun, though friends tend to call me Kazuo."

Julia – Kagome wasn't afraid to admit that the other girl was pretty, maybe even beautiful – gave her a shy smile, the blush slightly darkened, her hands clashed in front of her person, baby blues eyes watching her person shyly; she felt a smile tug at her own mouth. Blue-gray eyes looked back to Mirabelle, "What is it that you do on the island, Mirabelle?"

"We are where the animals are kept to be bought; Vaughn is the one to actually bring the animals to the island. He only stays here for a couple days before leaving the night of the second day." She explained. Kagome nodded, "So, are you his relatives?"

Mirabelle gave a small laugh, "No, we aren't, but we might as well be."

Kagome nodded in understanding, her eyes lit up in curiosity, "I see. Where about on the island do you two live?"

Julia spoke up this time, "By Taro's place, on the way to East Town."

"East Town?"

The blush faded a bit from the blonde girl's cheeks, "Yeah, though only a couple people live there."

This piqued Kagome's interest, there were more people on the island for her to meet – she had already met Denny and Vaughn (_Vaults_ suited him better) – and it made her wonder the generals about them, were they male or female, tall or short, long hair or short; she didn't know whether she should curse or indulge her curiosity. Standing from her position, she could tell that she and Julia were about the same height. The two of them looked over to Mirabelle, who was looking at the arrived Taro, "We should be heading back. Feel free to stop by the shop any time, Jun!"

"Okay! Bye!" Kagome waved to the two, watching them leave as Julia waved back to her as did her mother, stopping when they turned away. She turned her gaze to the bald grandfather that took his time coming up to her with his walking stick. He smiled at her, to which she returned, wondering what he was going to tell her today – if he did at all, "Good morning, Jun."

"Good morning."

"How was your first day and night on the island, so far?"

Kagome thought for a moment, "It was eventful. I met four of the island's inhabitants – Denny, Vaughn, Julia and Mirabelle. Denny had me fish with him yesterday afternoon."

Taro nodded, processing what the cross dresser told him, "All right. Today, I'm going to tell you about planting crops – to refresh your memory, you see, since you helped your grandmother before and all."

Kagome nodded, not really listening to what Taro was telling her, but she tried all the same. Now that she thought about Denny bringing her fishing yesterday, it brought her back to what she was doing before he took her to the beach – _'Did mom call back yet? Did she hear the message or did Souta get it and pass it along? Wait, what if they called already when I was asleep?'_

Looking back to the elderly man with the walking stick, she held out her hands when he dug around in his pockets for what he was going to give her. The priestess blinked at the few seed packets that were given to her, examining the picture on them curiously – _Turnip seeds_. Did he really just give her turnip seeds? She bowed to the mustached grandfather, "Thank you!"

"No need to thank me, Jun."

If she wasn't to thank him, then what was she supposed to do then when he gives her things? Act rudely towards him? _No!_

"Now, would you like me to repeat what it was that I just told you?"

Kagome looked to the elderly man, shaking her head in a negative, "No thank you."

Taro nodded, "All right then, I'll be on my way. Take care!"

"I will!"

Holding the seed packets, Kagome watched the old man off before pocketing the seeds and turning her attention to the field. Since she got up, a good majority of it was weeded – even look stones and sticks were removed from the farming land. Looking near the sun, she attempted to tell the time, but deemed it to be safely before noon, allowing her to work a bit more—the grumble from her stomach interrupted her from that thought and she looked down to her abdomen.

"All right, all right. I'll go eat."

Leaving the farming land, Kagome made her way to her house, being careful of her soil-dirtied hands as she opened the door, going to the bathroom to wash her hands. Coming back out, she looked to the bucket of dying fish. It made her heart clench, yes, but it made her wonder if she could sell the fish for whatever type of currency was used on the island… she did have granola bars and whatnot in her yellow bag – especially since she didn't have a kitchen to cook them.

Taking out the box of granola bars, Kagome sat on her floor, staring at the bucket of fish as she nibbled on the honey and oats bar, _'It's before noon, so I'll have to leave them in the bucket and put them in before five tonight to get money. That and keeping them in here will keep them from rotting out in the sun.'_ This way seemed more merciful to her, too. Getting up, the priestess threw the wrapper away in the garbage and went to the phone, had reaching for it, but she stopped herself and retracted her hand.

Turning away from the phone, she left her house, determined to get a little more work done before possibly changing and hopefully exploring the island more – she really wanted to meet new people, especially since there didn't seem to be any demonic presences on the island that could pose a threat to any new friends that she was going hopefully have.

* * *

**I'm no good at getting fast updates out when I am determined to have each chapter about 4000 words. :/ I hope that those that read this story won't mind the wait. I'm going to be getting to _Ask Ivan's Sisters_ soon – I kinda fell out of Hetalia, and I'm not really obsessing over anything right yet, which makes updates for some stories of mine slower. I will also be updating _Lover?_ and _Cat Ears_, too. I just need to go through and edit any grammar mistakes in the latter one. Also, I apologise for any words that have hyphens in them, the Hyphenation is automatic on Word 2007, on my computer. **

**Yes, there will be fanart as well!**

**Also, in the game, you don't have a bathroom or bath/shower at the beginning of the game, but I decided to be merciful to Kagome and at least give her a bathroom. Also, this sort of starts like _Sunshine Islands_, with the main characters already on the island, however, besides that, it's all _Island of Happiness._**


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